Positioning the Dominican Republic as a regional export and investment’s hub

Through expert guidance, training and/or inter-institutional cooperation, ProDominicana helps national exporters and foreign investors find better ways to do business.

ProDominicana’s comprehensive services to investors, exporters and buyers have actively contributed to the country’s current economic resilience, diversification and growth. From January to November 2021, the country’s exports reached historical levels, with an accumulated US $10,814 million; growth arrived at 28.4% compared to the first half of 2020; and FDI increased 49.4%, going from US $1,083 million in 2020 to US $1,617.5 million in 2021, making the Dominican Republic the first destination country for FDI in the Caribbean. “There has been a resilience of the country's industrial and export sectors, and the measures taken have reduced the impact of the pandemic, increased trust from investors, and opened doors to new business opportunities”, assures Mrs. Biviana Riveiro, Executive Director of ProDominicana.

On the export front, some of these measures include new platforms and services that have improved access to international markets, like the Directory of Exporters, the Export Guide, the FDI markets service and the training of more than 2,000 people to create a digital ecosystem of services. This digital platform integrates ProDominicana Capacita and Data Market, with all the information related to exports and access to international markets; as well as ProDominicana Connect, a B2B platform that connects international to local buyers and that is projected to be available to micro, small and medium entrepreneurs as well.

Furthermore, the Free Zone sector, which comprises around 60% of exports, has been positively influenced by the new Customs Law’s significant tax exemptions of up to 100% in installation and operation’s processes. Consequently, the sector grew 34.7% in the first half of 2021 with US $3,475,783, there are now over 75 parks with more than 700 free zone companies installed in the country, and the possibility to start selling to the domestic market without limitation. “Free zones are an essential sector that has undergone a very profitable revitalization process. We hope to grow to more than a thousand companies in the coming years, thanks to the facilities that are being granted to them”, assures Mrs. Riveiro.

Regarding investments, ProDominicana offers investors technical assistance, information and support in all the necessary steps and requirements for the installation, development and/or expansion of their projects. In order to further facilitate this process, the government has implemented the Zero Bureaucracy Program, including the “Single Investment Window”, to simplify procedures and save investors time and money by integrating all the necessary procedures in the same platform. Moreover, ProDominicana aims to keep promoting the public-private investment scheme to diversify into sectors like the renewable energies or other types of tourism to promote the development of major infrastructure projects with a high socioeconomic impact.

Given the country’s outstanding economic markers, beneficial legal framework and the excellent services and facilities offered to exporters and investors by ProDominicana and other governmental offices, ProDominicana’s Executive Director has no doubts regarding the country’s potential. “With one of the best telecommunications infrastructures in Latin America, more than 19,000 km2 of roads, eight international airports, twelve seaports, and four cruise ports, we already are the logistics’ hub of the Caribbean. Now, we intend to be the export and logistics’ hub of the region.”

Internationally experienced firm provides the best value-added legal advice and representation

For more than 40 years, they have been offering first-rate legal, regulatory and consulting services to multinationals and local clients.

“From the very moment you step into our office you realize what our motto is, we are in the business of adding value”, says Mr. Luis Rafael Pellerano, Managing Partner at Pellerano Nadal Law & Consulting. Working along with clients in the development of their business ventures, Pellerano Nadal offers them comprehensive solutions, from providing legal and advisory services when investing in existing businesses, setting up local operations or launching startups; to offering representation to negotiate the best contractual terms and secure governmental authorizations and permits. Their lawyers have consistently been ranked among the most prominent in the Dominican Republic, and through their innovative approach have managed to solve complex cases and become one of the leading firms in the country. “What makes us stand out in the industry is to be able to achieve what no one else can, always within the legal framework”, assures Mr. Pellerano.

They have a vast experience advising foreign and multinational companies that enter the Dominican market, which represent more than 90% of their total client base and work in specialized industries such as mining, energy, emerging technologies, aviation, tourism, financial services and telecommunications. “These are industries that are filled with challenges, so we have established good relationships with the respective authorities to match the speed that the business requires”, says Mr. Pellerano, explaining that part of their success resides precisely on having a clear knowledge of how these industries operate.

Through their expertise, Pellerano Nadal has assisted in securing some of the biggest landmark transactions in the country, such as the largest acquisition of a Dominican company in the 1990s, a power station valued at over US$2 billion; the largest foreign investment in the country, a gold investment project in the mines of Pueblo Viejo for over US$6 billion; the only international IPO and listing of a Dominican company on the New York Stock Exchange; and the first ever issuance of debt in the international capital markets by the Dominican government.

During the pandemic, Pellerano Nadal invested on further improving their connectivity, adding another competitive advantage to their already impressive portfolio. In the next years, they expect to have a higher demand of tax and environmental services, and above all to continue offering innovative solutions to the most complex and challenging cases. Like Mr. Pellerano assures, “as lawyers, we can be excellent strategic partners to our clients. Sometimes things are possible, other times they are impossible, but sometimes the problem can be that your project does not have the proper regulations. Those are the kind of challenges that we like to work on, the ones that seem impossible.”